Reign of Darkness
by Galaya
Summary: Second story in the Before camelot series. Kay and Galahad leave Ealdor and set out on a new journey. Raiders, battles, and chaos follow them wherever the two brothers go. Title doesn't really fit, I couldn't think of anything.
1. Prologue: Leaving Ealdor

**Reign of Darkness**

**Kay's Story**

Second in my _Before Camelot_ series.

Galaya

**Here's Kay and Galahad's story (mostly Kay's, as I have his name above.)**

**BBC's Merlin, not mine.**

* * *

Prologue: Leaving Ealdor

Kay walked with his younger brother, Galahad, towards the river. It was their last day in Ealdor for at least a year. The elder brother gazed off towards the east.

Ealdor was all he'd known. To be leaving indefinitely… he felt as if the world had turned upside-down.

Their cousin, Merlin, had told them both that he was certain they'd see Ealdor again. Merlin often seemed to know a whole lot more than what he let on. Maybe that was due to his magic.

That was one other thing that Kay was unsure about. Merlin, despite being a year older than Kay, often needed Kay's help because of his magic. Magic was hated by so many people these days.

Merlin had been forced to keep his magic hidden. Due to that and the fact that he heard others say that magic was evil so often, Merlin felt very withdrawn from the world. Kay, Galahad, and their friend Will tried to help him keep from getting depressed.

Kay hoped that, perhaps while he was away, his cousin would be able to find something or someone that could finally convince him that the others were wrong.

"Well, it'll sure be interesting not to be here anymore," Galahad commented, revealing that his thoughts reflected those of his older brother's.

"Yeah," Kay agreed.

"I would guess Merlin wishes he could come with us. He doesn't really like it here."

"He probably just wants to get out of doing any of the work. His magic has made him lazy."

The younger boy grinned.

"He really does use his magic for a lot of things, doesn't he?" Galahad chuckled.

Kay laughed along with him for a while, before they both fell silent. He sighed. Galahad looked at him quizzically.

"We're not going to see him or Hunith, Will, _anyone_ here for quite some time," Kay explained. "I'm going to miss everyone, especially Merlin, Hunith, and Will."

The younger boy nodded in agreement.

They sat by the river, throwing stones into the clear, rushing liquid. The sun began to set behind them. They would set out for Chovvel.

* * *

The two brothers, along with their parents, were standing outside of the family home, ready to leave.

Merlin grinned half-heartedly at his cousins.

"It's going to be quiet without you two," he said.

"Yeah, I'll say. Don't do anything foolish while we're gone," Kay chuckled.

"Shouldn't _I _be the one telling _you_ to not do anything foolish? I am older than you."

"Yes, but you also get into more trouble."

They both laughed. As Galahad and their parents turned to leave, the two cousins said farewell.

It was time for a new journey to begin…

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**Well, that was a short first chapter.**

**Reviews?**


	2. Chapter 1: Chovvel

**Reign of Darkness**

**Kay's Story**

Second in my _Before Camelot_ series.

Galaya

**Okay, this update came a lot quicker than I thought. Three chapters in one day, more than I've ever done before (of course, one of those chapters is in another of my stories, but what does that matter? It's still three chapters.)**

**BBC's Merlin, not mine.**

Chapter one: Chovvel

Kay yawned. It had been a long trek to Chovvel from Ealdor; they had been traveling for three months and had only arrived this morning. They had spent a good few weeks on a boat as they had had to cross the sea to get here.

At first, both he and Galahad had found being on the boat simply amazing. But once they had been through a storm out at sea, they weren't so sure that they'd ever want to leave dry land again.

It felt good to finally have a good night's rest. Though, the reason for this visit wasn't nearly as pleasant. His grandfather, his mother's father, was sick and soon to die.

He'd never known his grandfather. Sure, they got a few letters now and then, but he'd never met the man. Both Kay and Galahad were intrigued to meet him. It was unfortunate that they'd meet him on his deathbed.

Kay had missed Merlin greatly on the trip. Merlin's jokes always made anyone laugh. But the reason he joked like that wasn't as funny.

He yawned again. Night was falling. He headed toward the blanket that he'd used as a bed for so many years now. Neither of his parent nor his aunt, Hunith, had enough money to afford such luxuries.

It was so unfair that nobles could squander their money even as many peasants struggled to live, treasuring every last coin.

His father, Dølric, had spent a great amount for a seaman to ferry them across the sea. That'd hardly scrape the surface of what nobles had.

Ah, but what use was it to linger over what was fair and what wasn't? If Merlin did, he'd likely be wanting revenge on whoever persecuted magic. Nothing was truly fair nor would anything ever be.

He lay down. Galahad was sleeping soundly on the other side of the small room. The younger boy fell asleep unbelievably quickly, yet woke slower than the dead.

He blew out the candle and lay his head down.

Kay and Galahad's mother gripped the hand of her dying father. He gazed at her with adoration.

"My dear Vaníce," the old man rasped. "You need not shed tears for me. It is my time to go."

"I don't want you to," Vaníce cried. Dølric rubbed her shoulder in sympathy.

The past two months had been hard on her. It wasn't easy to care for someone you cared about as their life slipped away from them.

Kay and Galahad had done everything they possibly could to make things easier for their mother.

"Life is short. Treasure it, my dear. Treasure the times you have with your husband, your children, and your friends. Death sweeps upon us quicker than should be possible. Fate dictates everything. Sometimes, you simply need to face it, even if you do not want to. Good bye, my dear Vaníce," with those words, the old man lay still.

Vaníce sobbed and cradled her father's body. None of them noticed the omen in the old man's words.

It had been a month since the old man had passed away, three weeks since he had been buried. Vaníce and Dølric had decided to stay in Chovvel for a while.

Kay had met a young boy around his age, Luke, who he had become friends with.

Luke reminded him a bit of Merlin, quick to joke about things he didn't like and friendly. Except, Luke didn't have magic and was well-liked by everyone in Chovvel.

Galahad had met a young girl around _his_ age that he had taken a liking to. Kay laughed whenever he saw his younger brother around the girl.

Her name was Audrey. Every time she was anywhere near him, Galahad blushed. He had spoken to her once. And that conversation had been full of stammering on Galahad's part.

Audrey was a very nice girl. She actually was a perfect match for Galahad. They both were quite adventurous and rash. Kay hoped that Galahad got over his awkwardness soon and actually got to know Audrey.

Kay had talked with Audrey a couple times. She found Galahad's embarrassed behavior to be both amusing and a little strange. When Kay had explained his brother's reason, she had burst out laughing.

Once she stopped laughing enough to talk, she had begun to ask him questions about Galahad. She had been quite curios about Galahad. Quite curios indeed…

When he had revealed to Galahad that he had spoken with Audrey, the younger boy had proceeded to pester him with questions about her.

Vaníce had noticed Galahad's odd behavior and inquired Kay about it. He had chuckled the entire time he explained the situation. It was quite amusing. Vaníce had then decided to stay until Galahad had had at least one conversation with the girl without stammering.

Kay was walking along the small pond that was west of the village, closer to the direction Ealdor was in. He was getting homesick. He wondered how Merlin was doing without them there. And also how their cousin would react when he heard the news about Galahad…

Looking to the north, he noticed that there were what looked to be the light from torches some ways in the distance. Traders? No, that couldn't be right. The villagers had said that the traders came in the spring. It was autumn.

Bandits, perhaps? No, there were too many.

If those people weren't traders or bandits, who were they?

**Well, it's longer than the first. The part about Galahad and Audrey came entirely on a whim. But who are these new people? All shall be revealed in the next chapter, do no fret.**


	3. Chapter 2: Raiders!

**Reign of Darkness**

**Kay's Story**

Second in my _Before Camelot_ series.

Galaya

**Wow, I am getting very motivatedto write these past two days.**

**BBC's Merlin, not mine.**

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Chapter two: Raiders!

Galahad walked through the village, thinking about Audrey. Would he ever have the courage to speak with her? He doubted it. At least, not in the time they were here.

He looked up. It was midday and quite hot. He saw his older brother walking into Chovvel over to the west with a confused and worried expression.

"What's wrong, Kay?" he called out.

Kay glanced at him.

"Don't know," the older boy admitted. "There's a rather large group of people west and to the north of here. I have no idea who they are. I'm going to go ask if anyone knows or at least has an idea."

Galahad nodded, agreeing with Kay's reasoning.

The two brothers walked together in silence. Luke soon came into view. He was joking with one of the other boys.

"Luke! I have a question," Kay told him.

"What is it?" the grinning boy asked.

Kay explained what he'd seen. Both of the boys from Chovvel paled at this news.

"Do you think it could be the Saxons?" the boy Luke had been joking with only minutes before questioned.

"Saxons?" Galahad inquired, puzzled.

"They're a group of raiders that have been terrorizing the kingdom. No one is sure where they've come from," explained Luke. "If it _is _them, we're in trouble."

* * *

That evening was stressful for the two brothers. They were used to a bit of danger. Merlin seemed to attract it like vultures to a corpse. But this was different.

They'd asked many questions about the Saxons, and what they'd heard wasn't good.

The Saxons had been around for nearly two decades now. Originally, they'd just done a few raids and taken slaves. But now… they were slaughtering people and destroying villages left and right.

Dusk had set in and everyone in the village was tense. Dusk was usually when the Saxons attacked.

Kay watched nervously from the window in his grandfather's old cottage. Suddenly, a man appeared outside, holding a torch and an axe. The man turned and looked directly at him.

He froze. What was he supposed to do? The man outside lunged at the cottage, Kay ducked away from the window. Glass shattered and wood cracked.

Bells rang. The man from outside hacked his way into the cottage. Kay grabbed a poker from the fireplace and swung it at him. The man laughed, a bloodthirsty glint in his eyes.

Galahad darted into the room. As soon as the younger boy saw what was going on, he screamed. Dølric and Vaníce barged through the door to protect their sons. The axe man swung his weapon.

The axe connected with Vaníce and she fell to the ground, dead.

"Mother!" Galahad cried.

Kay was too busy trying to avoid death himself to do much of anything as another man, this one wielding a sword, entered through the hole in the wall.

Dølric roared a battle cry. The swordsman stabbed him. Both boys watched in horror as their father fell before them.

They glanced at each other and fled.

Chaos filled the entire villages. Buildings burned. Screams and sobs cut through the air, mingling with the manic laughter of the attackers.

The two brothers tried to dodge weapons and people as they made their escape. They soon caught the sight of one of the attackers, _Saxons_, was tying up Audrey. Galahad stopped.

"We have to help her!" he cried, turning to Kay, eyes wide.

Kay nodded in consent. They rushed over. Kay managed to pick up a sword that had been laying on the ground and Galahad picked up a few good-sized rocks. Galahad threw his rocks as Kay slashed at the man.

The man turned around and stared incredulous at the boy who obviously had no idea how to use a sword.

Galahad suddenly cried out. Kay spun to see him collapse, a Saxon standing over him. The younger boy was only unconscious, not dead, but the sight nearly stopped Kay's heart.

"Galahad!" he cried even as he too fell unconscious.

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**I know this chapter's a bit short, but it has a lot of fast moving scenes. **

**Reviews?**


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